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Nursing Career Information

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Thinking about a career in nursing? Are you interested in science and biology? Care for individuals? Then chances are a career assessment would find you fit for a nursing position. Such a job requires constant dedication to learning, as the medical field is always changing, and also many hours of hard work. Nurses tend to be paid well at the sacrifice of a steady work schedule. Sometimes you will be required to work overnight shifts while other days you will have more of a normal schedule. You have to be the kind of person who can adapt.

How do you become a nurse?In order to become a nurse, an education in nursing is required, either through a 4 year college or through an accelerated program that can be completed in a year or two. Once the education has been completed, a nursing candidate has to sign up for the NCLEX exam. It is only until that exam is passed that a candidate becomes a fully registered nurse.

The nursing professionAs mentioned before, nurses are paid well and that's for many reasons. They handle many different jobs in hospitals that professionals, such as doctors, don't deal with. This includes changing bedpans, moving patients onto their beds, and giving patients their prescribed medications. Also, another big reason they are paid so well is because they are on-call many times throughout the week. It can be hard to have that work/life balance, yet for those who find nursing their passion in life, then all this work is rewarding and worthwhile.

Potential for a nursing career:By going through many years of excellent service, a nurse has many opportunities for upward mobility. This increases both the potential in pay, as well as the potential in more flexibility in terms of scheduling. That's where seniority comes into play. Acquiring a masters in nursing is also another great way to increase salary potential and also pave the way for promotions.

If you have the desire and determination to go through the schooling and the studying involved to pass the NCLEX examination, then nursing might be a career path for you. As long as you are able to handle the sporadic hours in a nurse's schedule on top of all the various tasks involved, you might have found your true calling. It's important to keep up with the latest medical news, advancements, and trends to set you apart from the other nurses. With recent job shortages, you want to stand out from the rest of the competition.